This invention relates to sealed shaft bearing assemblies and more particularly to an improved axle bearing assembly employing a seal shroud.
Typical railway freight car axle roller bearing assemblies utilize two rows of tapered roller bearings preassembled into a self-contained package for mounting onto journals at the ends of axles. In railway freight car axle bearings of this type, the two rows of tapered roller bearing elements are fitted one into an outer race at each end of a common bearing cup, and a pair of bearing cones defining the inner races normally have an inner diameter dimension to provide an interference fit with the axle journal. A cylindrical sleeve or spacer positioned between the cones provides an accurate spacing of the inner races on the journal. Seals mounted within each end of the bearing cup provide sealing contact with wear rings positioned one against the outer end faces of the bearing cones at each end of the assembly. The entire assembly is prelubricated and adapted to be pressed as a unit onto the end of the axle journal.
An end cap mounted on the end of the axle by bolts threaded into bores into the axle engages the outboard wear ring and clamps the entire assembly on the end of the axle and applies an axial compressive load to the assembly between the axle fillet and the end cap.
An object is to provide a separate shroud that can assist in keeping the lubrication within the axle bearing assembly and to keep abrasives and other contaminants out of the axle bearing assembly. Ideally, such shroud would be able to be installed on new axle bearing assemblies as a final assembly step or retrofitted onto existing bearings in service on railway freight cars.